This article contains spoilers for The Boy and the Heron.
In Hayao Miyazaki’s latest cinematic masterpiece, The Boy and the Heron, the question “How should I live?” is a central theme that ponders the audience as we witness a young boy grappling to find his own answer to the cathartic query.
On Sept. 7, The Boy and the Heron made its international debut at the 48th annual Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) as the first Japanese and animated film to ever open the festival.
READ MORE: TIFF to open this year’s festival with a Japanese animated film for the first time ever
This touching and beautiful tale by Miyazaki’s Oscar-winning animation company Studio Ghibli, tells the story of Mahito Maki (Soma Santoki), a child who suffers a life-altering tragedy when his mother dies in a hospital fire during the Second World War in Japan. Four years later, he and his father Shoichi (Takuya Kimura) move to the countryside to live with his pregnant “new mother,” Natsuko.
As Mahito attempts to acclimate to his new environment, he is constantly haunted by his loss and the trauma of being unable to save his mother. Through this, he meets a peculiar gray heron who demands his presence and eventually leads him into a mysterious tower where the lines between reality and reverie are blurred.
In this magical realm, Mahito fights his inner pain in order to rescue the people he cares about in a daring quest brimmed with shocking revelations, whimsically determined creatures, and moments pivoting on life and death.
As he wanders in the dreamy space coined as “the above,” Mahito meets and encounters characters which transform the way he views the essence of his existence. Miyazaki cleverly uses a symphony of the four elements of matter: Earth, water, air and fire, to construct a universe where Mahito must navigate and battle the depths of the otherworldly.
Strange obstacles such as a myriad of hungry parakeets and its righteous king, an autonomous electrifying stone, and at times, an overbearing gray heron as a sidekick are a few of the hurdles in which Mahito must contest.
Throughout the film, each challenge Mahito faces becomes more and more unpredictable, leaving the audience lost in curiosity and wonder with each and every scene. The Boy and the Heron delves into the core of grief, loss and love in a heart-breaking, yet powerful adventure of a boy who finds connection, meaning and direction, following a previous life of mental guilt.
From first glance, the film can naively give the impression of a family-friendly fable, however the plot stems much deeper than what’s seen on the surface. Themes such as death and horror are cloaked and disguised by playful characters, meanwhile, the spiritual use of birds is inherently showcased to symbolize protection, freedom and the divine.
The legendary animator, Miyazaki, is famously notable for having a flair for the fantastical and embedding a personal anecdote in his work. For instance, in The Boy and the Heron, Mahito’s father works for a family building planes for Japan’s military, a job which Miyazaki’s own father also had.
Miyazaki’s stellar reputation precedes him given his last film, The Wind Rises, released a mere decade ago, followed by fan favourites, Howl’s Moving Castle, Spirited Away, and My Neighbor Totoro.
The 82-year-old filmmaker has a pattern of creating the most intrinsic and gorgeously-detailed films using only his two hands, a unique artistic form in which few have truly mastered. This style has become an indicator of his genus, in addition to his impeccable world building and storytelling. The innovative mind of Miyazaki goes beyond the limits of imagination to provide viewers with the most visually appealing illustrations and hard-hitting story arcs.
For this reason, The Boy and the Heron is Miyazaki’s first feature in ten years and unsurprisingly it met everyone’s expectations. What makes this particular film even more impressive is the fact that it barely had or needed any marketing. Prior to its Japan premiere back on July 14, the only promotion the film had was simply a teaser poster, void of any semblance of the plot or cast.
Among the few details fans knew was that the film was inspired by Genzaburo Yoshino’s book How Do You Live?, Miyazaki’s favourite novel that he read as a young boy.
In an interview with Now Toronto, Studio Ghibli Executive Junichi Nishioka explained why the studio opted for the lack of marketing.
“In the past, Studio Ghibli films have been financed by many entities and so, there was a pressure to make a hit. But this time, this has been almost like an indie film. It’s self-financed. So, it was very interesting to see what kind of film Miyazaki would make when he didn’t have that pressure to make a hit and also, to show it without any preconception to the audience,” he said through a translator.
Essentially, the studio relied on its fans to make The Boy and the Heron a success and its fans did rightfully so and achieved this feat with ease. The box office opening weekend for The Boy and the Heron grossed $13.2 million in Japan and is considered Studio’s Ghibli’s biggest opening ever in yen (1.48 billion yen).
The Boy and the Heron proves Miyazaki remains at the height of his career. Despite ongoing rumours of it being his last film, the iconic director has reportedly revealed he is not retiring after all. In an interview with CBC, Nishioka said the filmmaker is “currently working on ideas for a new film.”
“He comes into his office every day and does that. This time, he’s not going to announce his retirement at all. He’s continuing working just as he has always done,” he said through his translator.
The Boy and the Heron is scheduled to release in North American theatres on Dec. 8.
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